Starry Sky Orchestra
by F23
Summary: R.O.B. is the newest member and wants to understand what his other friends feel "fun" or "beautiful". But when he's told that he may overheat and break because of all of the information he's trying to learn, the others plan a secret event for him.


As R.O.B. craned his head back, the starry brilliance of the clear night sky displayed before him. It was particularly chilly outside but R.O.B. didn't shiver or make any sound.

A little bit of tree blocked his vision so, without taking his eyes off the sky, he rolled his wheels slowly to find the perfect spot. And when he finally found a place where no trees or artificial light disturbed his vision, he was well away from the mansion where all of his friends lived and his surroundings were silent.

He let out a low, resonating beep that vibrated his head. It may have sounded like a sigh. Human aesthetics was a challenging aspect R.O.B. found difficult to understand, and that separated him from the rest of his friends. But he was beginning to understand the beauty of the night sky.

When he looked up to his first night sky a couple months ago, all he saw was dark blue, and a random array of white and yellow dots that flickered on his screen.

Sheik was with him at the time, and R.O.B. was surprised to find he related Sheik as similar to the night sky. Sheik's blue clothing and his quiet demeanor suited the dark firmament, although his hard drive couldn't translate what the meaning was behind the strange metaphor.

"Beautiful, isn't it? " Sheik's voice was a bit muffled from the mask that concealed his face. R.O.B. didn't stir a sound. The dark blue and white flickers were repetitive, and wasn't quite as interesting as the colorful variety of his friends.

"You don't agree? Hmm. Are you seeing through your eyes, or your heart?" Sheik patted his chest, where his blood-pumping organ should be located. R.O.B. tilted his head. He learned this gesture from Toon Link; he tilted his head whenever he was confused trying to work the television set before Ness came to assist him.

"Don't always see through your eyes. _Feel_ through your eyes. _See _with your heart. It's complex, but you'll understand someday."

R.O.B. let a concerned sound escape from his speakers. It wasn't that he didn't have any clue to what his other friends felt things were "beautiful". But he only knew beauty by definition. Beauty is something visually and internally pleasing. That is all R.O.B. knew.

But after days and weeks of staring at the night sky with different people, R.O.B. began to appreciate sharing the quiet, relaxing atmosphere under the twinkling stars. However tonight, he was alone.

He looked back to count the number of windows that were lit up and was surprised to find only five were dimly lit. The last time he checked, most of the rooms were awake and he heard laughter even from this distance. Time must have gone by very quickly.

The balcony on the top floor was still illuminated in a warm orange glow. Snake and the rest of the adults were usually there after the kids slept, to lounge and talk. R.O.B. beeped quietly, and then a bit excitedly to see a thin gray streak of smoke from the balcony and escape into the sky. Snake was still awake.

R.O.B. turned back, bowed to the stars and went back inside. Bowing was another gesture he learned from his friends. He saw Lucario and Meta Knight bow at each other before and after their daily training. Lucario told him that it was a polite gesture to address oneself to another.

* * *

><p>In the living room on the first floor, Falco was sitting on the sofa and Pit was leaning over the furniture talking to him intently. Once the two of them noticed R.O.B., they greeted briefly and went back to their conversation.<p>

The new elevator that was constructed by Fox and a couple others that were familiar with architecture, sat in the corner of the stairs as R.O.B. approached. It was small, but it was just enough space for three people. He appreciatively pressed the up button and took some space back. When the elevator made a pleasant '_ding_' sound and the doors opened, R.O.B. was surprised to see Red run up behind him holding a box full of papers.

"Hi R.O.B.! Can you press 6 for me?" Red asked, his voice choppy and out of breath. R.O.B. pressed the '6' button and noticed that was the same floor he wanted to go to. He turned to Red and made a pleasing "_boop_" sound.

"Oh. Did you want to go to the sixth floor too?"

R.O.B. nodded. The Pokémon trainer smiled in return. He waited for a moment as if he was calculating the timing, and asked, "Aren't you sleepy?"

The interior joints that supported R.O.B.'s neck whirred as he shook his head. Slowing was what he felt instead of lethargy. When his friends went to lie down in beds, R.O.B. feels his lenses lose focus and an urge to rest comes to him. Was this being "sleepy"? But he wasn't feeling that now.

Red carefully placed the boxes down at his feet and took out a small electronic device. With quick fingers and nimble clicking noises, he quickly placed the device back in his pocket and held the box of papers in his arms again.

The elevator doors rolled open, but much to R.O.B.'s surprise, the floor was quiet. The warm orange lights were lit but no one, not even Snake, was there. Red was unaffected and placed the box on the table in the middle of the room.

"What's wrong, R.O.B.?"

R.O.B. felt his arm joints cringe. If there was some way to express his concern and confusion, he would. But that is difficult to communicate with only arms and electronic noises. Instead, he shook his head slowly.

"Ok. Well, I'm done here. Are you going to stay?"

R.O.B. shook his head again. His lenses began to go out of focus and a faint hum in his speakers indicated his power levels going down. He was tired after all.

* * *

><p>The next time R.O.B. woke up, he was surprised to find himself in the care room. There were many wires that connected him to a larger machine. The purr from the machine reached R.O.B. pleasantly. He stared at the small analog clock on the desk and updated the time. It was four-ten in the afternoon. He has rested through morning and lunch. R.O.B. let out a low, gloomy sound. He loves being one of the first ones to come down to the bottom floor in the morning and wait for the people to arrive for breakfast.<p>

The smoke glass door opened revealing his good friend Mr. Game and Watch, and Dr. Mario. His two-dimensional friend immediately approached him and bowed. R.O.B. bowed back solemnly. Dr. Mario's moustache widened into a smile and asked, "How are you feeling?"

R.O.B. nodded. He couldn't identify which part of his structure was malfunctioning. But still, Dr. Mario sat in his chair and sighed.

"Are you having any trouble adjusting here?"

There were those cringing in his arms again. As much as he wanted to say he was doing fine, he struggled communicating to people and he was just learning the concepts and aesthetics his friends feel. The only friend that understood him without verbally communicating was Mr. Game and Watch, and he seemed very comfortable to this life.

Dr. Mario looked through some papers. "I just don't want you to stress yourself. I had some of those mechanic whizzes take a quick look at you and it seems your hard drive is warming up more than usual. It may be something bad, but it might be something good. But let's take it easy, okay?"

A warm hand was placed on R.O.B.'s headpiece. As Dr. Mario patted his head gently, R.O.B. looked down. He was finally starting to understand something beautiful and his hard drive couldn't take it? It was too soon. He had much to learn. Maybe becoming human was an impossible dream.

* * *

><p>After a quick final check, Dr. Mario removed the wires connecting R.O.B. and he and Mr. Game and Watch came out of the office hand-in-hand. Mr. Game and Watch turned back to his mechanical friend with a grin on his face. He pointed to the front yard where Link gathered the kids for their afternoon game of tag. But R.O.B. braked on his wheels and shook his head. With force, he broke away from his hand and turned to the elevator.<p>

Mr. Game and Watch tugged on R.O.B.'s wire on his back. Even with his best friend inviting him to one of his favorite games, R.O.B. could not gather the courage to play out in the sunlight again. Inside R.O.B.'s headpiece, his hard drive, listed everything that he wanted. He wanted to make more friends, he wanted to understand emotions and their wonderful, sometimes shocking complexity. He wanted to communicate and exchange dialogue with the people.

His head, a spot right behind his lenses, were warm. But as he placed his hand piece above his lenses, they weren't hot on the surface. His head was _cold_. Almost reluctantly, he removed his hand piece from his head to pat his friend, who was still holding onto the wire. Mr. Game and Watch didn't argue anymore.

Pushing the up button on the elevator was one of R.O.B.'s favorite parts of going about in the mansion. Now, he was straining to lift his arm to press the button. The internal heat in his hard drive worsened as he caught the Ice Climbers scramble down the _stairs_ giggling to join their friends outside. R.O.B. thought he gave up on trying the stairs after Fox made the elevator.

But Mr. Game and Watch tilted his head, trying to conceal a small smile as his friend went inside the elevator box.

The room was clean. Someone must have already been through to dust off the charging pod that took up most of R.O.B.'s room. After plugging his charger to his rear, R.O.B. stood still.

He could hear the children laugh and scream as Link chased them around. It pained him to hear the playful enjoyment. For a second he thought of unplugging his charger and putting a stop to this selfishness, but his warm hard drive wore him. Eventually the mild sunlight and the voices he loved listening to soothed him to rest.

* * *

><p>A light rap on the door brought R.O.B. back into consciousness. Even after fully charging, the heavy, hot weight in his head didn't lift off. Pit opened the door and turned on the light. The newly updated time was eight twenty at night. He has missed dinnertime also.<p>

Pit didn't seem concerned about R.O.B.'s state. Instead, he took his hand and ushered him out. "Come with me."

Mr. Game and Watch was waiting for the two of them at the elevator. He had his bell out and R.O.B. hoped he wouldn't ring it into his sleepy speakers, but his friend just held onto it as the three of them went inside the elevator box. R.O.B. stared at Pit and then to Mr. Game and Watch. The two of them just kept a tight mouth until the elevator doors rolled open to reveal the sixth floor.

* * *

><p>The floor was dark. The only light that illuminated the room was the moonlight seeping from the balcony. R.O.B. let out a worried warble, but Pit and Mr. Game and Watch were gone. What was different from last night when he came here, was that he could hear faint giggles and rustling all throughout the room.<p>

Before he could remember he had headlights, paper lamps that were dangling from the ceiling and the walls flickered on. The soft fluorescent light finally revealed his friends all holding unusual hand-held devices. Some of them, for example Zelda, sat down at a small black stool and held a much larger instrument.

R.O.B. still couldn't understand what was displayed before him. "_Boop?_" was all he could manage before Mr. Game and Watch came up to his friend and grinned. Pit pointed at his ears and then to his heart.

"We want you to listen with your ears and your heart, R.O.B." He said.

R.O.B. still tilted his head. Toon Link hopped off from his podium with his Wind Waker tightly in his hand. "It's our welcome present to you! Sit back and enjoy the show."

"Samus, is the recording good?" Marth asked while he twisted the knobs on his instrument. It was an elegant shape with strings that were tightly stretched across. R.O.B. will know later that this instrument is called a 'violin'. From the sidelines, Samus lifted her thumb up with a smile. Black machines and wires R.O.B. wasn't accustomed to were spread across the table.

Finally, Mario came down with a bronze instrument with three keys and a circular bell at the end. He came up to R.O.B. with a wide grin on his face. "We want you to listen to music. You've probably heard of it during Brawls and when we watch the television, but this music is very special, and we want you to listen to it as a welcome present."

Even with the decoration of the paper lamps and the anticipated grand concert, R.O.B. couldn't bring himself to truly appreciate the event. If he experienced something so big, something that is going to be absolutely _beautiful_, his hard drive might finally overheat and explode.

Mario was about to reassure him, but Fox was quick to come up to them.

"Um, R.O.B., I have to apologize to you."

R.O.B. shifted his attention to a rare, nervous Fox. Mario rolled his eyes and sighed.

"We all saw you trying really hard to adjust to the life here. You think you're the only one that is different from everyone, but we're all different but we can all get together as a group of friends, as a team, to help one another and enjoy being together. So uh…" Fox trailed off.

"Fox came up with the idea of removing your hearing divisions every night in order to practice for this. It was a good idea, since you didn't notice us making that much noise at night, but your hearing parts were very close to your hard drive. Exposing that area wasn't good for you, but you auto-heal malfunctions if we stop messing around with your system."

"So, according to my doctor self, you trying to adjust and educating yourself should have no problem to your hard drive. You didn't show any signs of overheating until Fox here messed with your head." Mario finished. Fox chuckled uneasily.

R.O.B.'s lenses whirred into power with excitement. Fox and Mario shared relieved smiles. Toon Link called to them from the very high podium to get to their stations.

* * *

><p>As the Wind Waker rose, Zelda's long, graceful fingers brushed at the strings on her tall instrument. Unusual images started to blossom inside R.O.B.'s hard drive. The delicate melody reminded of the flowers that adorned the front yard, just as they start blooming. As other string instruments joined Zelda, he could see himself rolling his wheels across the meadow, following the path of flora.<p>

Mario and other bell instruments joined in dramatically as the music took a different direction. Many of the members turned the papers on their stands. R.O.B. eyed the box that was placed near Samus' table. Red's stack of papers he was carrying last night were music sheets. R.O.B. chirruped as he imaged his friends hiding from him that night, trying to keep the secret concert before its premiere.

He was taken by surprise as Wolf howled and electronic noise burst from behind the orchestra. Toon Link tried to suppress, but a laugh escaped from him. As R.O.B. carefully listened to every piece of instrument, he noticed his friend, Mr. Game and Watch, remained musically silent. He was swaying with the beat but his bell was placed on the ground.

Nevertheless, now everyone except him joined in the symphony. The random mixture of classical and modern musical instruments came together as one piece of music, leaving R.O.B. in sheer awe. He eyed each and every one of the virtuosos and if he knew how to smile, it would be wide spread on his face.

* * *

><p>Toon Link brought his Wind Waker down vividly, and the music evaporated. R.O.B.'s hearing segments ringed. The melody still lingered wistfully and he wished it wasn't the end.<p>

A brisk, yet light harmony created again and R.O.B. had to hold in his urge to beep with delight. He spotted Link holding an oval-shaped wind instrument that fitted nicely in his hands. The sharp and quick tune was soon fused with Pit's long instrument that he held horizontally across his mouth. Pit's sweet melody and Link's brisk harmony entwined each other resembling two dancers.

Several of the musicians placed their instruments and grabbed different music sheets. They quickly assembled themselves to the front and took in a deep breath. R.O.B. could not identify the tune, but the memorable yet simple singing made him start to sway. He narrowed his lenses at Jigglypuff and King Dedede's confident singing, Lucas' nervousness in his voice, and many others with different singing voices.

The electronic music continued the song's melody after the singers ended their solo, and everybody picked up their instruments again.

"One more tiiime!" Snake shouted from the background with his guitar in one hand. R.O.B.'s chest piece rose at the same time Toon Link raised his Wind Waker. Mr. Game and Watch finally joined in the band and R.O.B. had to giggle at his friend's fervor as he skipped around the band swinging his bell.

As he listened flatly, it was the melody from the beginning, but as he listened to each of the instruments, he heard Link and Pit's duet, the shrill electronic noise, and the singing in a form of string music. Every section played their parts but as a total, it became one piece of beautiful, absolutely _beautiful,_ music.

Toon Link raised his arms high, made two circles and cut it horizontally. R.O.B. could almost _see_ the music lift off from the air and disappear out of the room. He waited until the lingering echoes where completely gone, and started clapping with such short frequency and intensity, his joints might exhaust and fall off. He beeped, warbled, and chattered. Everyone dropped their shoulders in relief.

"I got everything. I'll burn it in a CD for you so you can listen to this anytime you want." Samus smiled and patted R.O.B.'s head. He noticed the uncomfortable pain was gone, and it was replaced with excited heat.

* * *

><p>Now everyone surrounded the robotic friend. Children were pulling on his arm pleading they were hungry. R.O.B. didn't understand. Dinnertime was at seven and now the time is well past nine.<p>

"We actually haven't ate yet…" Red chuckled, rubbing his empty stomach.

"Come on! Let's go eat! I am STARVING!" Wario announced. Everyone shouted in approval and hurried out the door.

Several others patted R.O.B. or hugged him, but Mr. Game and Watch stayed behind with him at the end. R.O.B. chirped with joy and the two of them pressed the down button and took the elevator hand-in-hand.

* * *

><p>Epilogue:<p>

R.O.B. learned a new term today: awkward. He watched Pit tease Link that he was still shorter than Zelda and called him "awkward." R.O.B. nodded with sympathy and Link stomped to the kitchen to down a tall glass of milk.

He also saw Peach and Mario trying to dress Samus in a cute pink apron so they could prepare for lunch and the bounty hunter looked embarrassed. _Awkward_, R.O.B. carefully worded his new vocabulary in his head.

"Hey R.O.B.! Race us to the top of the stairs!" Ness shouted from behind him. Mr. Game and Watch and Toon Link were waving at him invitingly, but R.O.B. bumbled. If he had bipeds he would gladly take their challenge, but he stared at his wheels.

"No no, come here!" Toon Link took R.O.B.'s hand and pointed out the new feature on the stairs.

Other than the standard square steps, a smooth ramp was added right next them. R.O.B. recalled the Starfox members gathering some of the men in a construction a couple weeks ago, but everyone was told to stay back for safety, therefore only a handful of people knew about the new ramp during the process.

"Do you like it? I thought it's a great idea since elevators can break down at any time." Fox came up behind them and gazed at the ramp proudly.

"You better like it, it was a back breaker." Captain Falcon laughed heartily.

R.O.B. warbled thankfully and already started to roll his wheels across the carpeted ramp. Mr. Game and Watch and the other kids protested and began scrambling up the stairs after him.

* * *

><p>Author's Note: I've always wanted to make a story about R.O.B. I rewrote this story about three times... but I like the outcome. Also I guessed on what instrument the members play. I have a feeling all of them are pretty creative enough to make music.<p> 


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